Terror's Advocate
Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: October 12, 2007 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
75
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
16
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Edelstein
A brilliant study in the link between moral corruption and narcissism. Read full review
88
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
Schroeder's film is a fascinating character study in contradictions and in the end Verges remains loathsome, oddly charismatic and willfully enigmatic. Read full review
88
Boston GlobeMark Feeney
Outrageous controversialist meets brilliant attorney, and fact intertwines with fiction. Read full review
88
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Jason McBride
If the roots of terrorism are hopelessly snarled, Terror's Advocate does a very good job of exposing some of the soil in which they grow. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The title Terror's Advocate is both a statement of fact and a worrisome understatement in a documentary as slippery as its subject. Read full review
80
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Terror's Advocate is largely a mix of talking heads and archival footage, but as Vergés's connections to Swiss neo-Nazis and Congo secessionists are explored, the movie becomes a fantastic international thriller. Read full review
80
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
It is one of the most engaging, morally unsettling political thrillers in quite some time, with the extra advantage of being true. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
It is the gift of Terror's Advocate, Barbet Schroeder's riveting new documentary, to simply present Vergès as is, to say "here is the man" and let things speak for themselves. Do they ever. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubNoel Murray
If nothing else, Terror's Advocate offers a useful summary of the last half-century of global politics, and how changing public perceptions can make goats out of heroes. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleTamara Straus
A complex story. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Whatever one makes of its subject's moral code and mind-set, one has to give Terror's Advocate its due: the stories are riveting, the man is real. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Less a portrait of this controversial man than a touchstone "to trace the history of contemporary terrorism." Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
A fascinating film even if it never completely pins him (Verges) down. Read full review
70
VarietyLisa Nesselson
Sure to inspire debate in France and Germany and of obvious interest to anyone who follows the roots of modern international terrorism, doc probes gray areas in the colorful life of its controversial, limelight-courting subject. Read full review
70
Washington PostStephen Hunter
The result is a panorama of European radicalism. Depending on your politics, you may think "long live the revolution" or "curse the day the CIA ended its assassination program." Read full review
63
PremiereGlenn Kenny
It's a fascinating portrait, but it's also choppy and rushed and lopsided. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
While I understand Vergès' oft-repeated claim that he wants to use these sensational cases to point out that the French were no better than the Nazis in their treatment of colonial subjects, it's impossible to overlook his glib dismissal of his clients' crimes and the smug righteousness that rests in the smirk constantly on his face. Read full review
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